The long-talked about “new normal” in a post-pandemic world has almost reached the City of Greater Sudbury, where those staff members returning to in-person work have already done so.
Going out with a bang before a lingering fizzle, the most difficult days of the COVID-19 pandemic took place earlier this year, when as many as 80 staff members were redeployed to other areas to ensure that essential services were maintained.
“We really did reach a peak in terms of employee absenteeism,” city general manager of corporate services Kevin Fowke told city council during tonight’s meeting.
A COVID-19 outbreak at Pioneer Manor shortly after Christmas signaled the start of a difficult quarter, city CAO Ed Archer told Sudbury.com after the meeting.
“Paramedics got affected as well, so in Q1 there were a lot of absences,” he said.
“I know it went through my house, it went through a lot of houses,” Fowke added, noting that many overtime hours were earned and non-union staff was brought in to fill integral gaps.
During the first quarter, other municipal operations such as garbage and recycling collection and GOVA Transit services were also affected as staff members called in sick due to COVID-19.
In the first quarter of this year, 40 per cent of short-term disability claims were identified as “respiratory illness,” presumed to be related to the omicron variant of COVID-19, and there were 159 Workplace Safety and Insurance Board claims related to workplace exposures.
Of these claims, 145 were from employees at Pioneer Manor and nine were from Pandemic Services. This translates to approximately 30 per cent of full and part-time staff members of Pioneer Manor missing a day or more due to COVID-19 during the first quarter of 2022 alone.
Although all redeployed staff members have since returned to their regular duties, Fowke cautioned, “I wouldn’t suggest it’s at normal levels just yet.”
“We’re continuing to navigate impacts to service delivery and there’s a significant amount of strain being placed on those attending work and working on those recovery items as a result.”
The COVID-19 pandemic remains active in the community, but appears to be on a downward trajectory after peaking at the start of the year.
As the United Nations was being formed in the aftermath of the Second World Wark, UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill famously said, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.”
Fowke invoked this quote with city council during tonight’s meeting before highlighting the various ways in which the city’s operations have changed throughout the pandemic – for the better, he argued.
The city, he said, took “strategic opportunities” to permanently change operations throughout.
Staff members returned to work on a staggered schedule which concluded on May 2. By this time, those who are returning to an in-person work setting had already done so.
Approximately 300 of the municipality’s 2,500 full-time equivalent staff members are now working remotely on a permanent basis.
“The building is not anywhere near as bustling and busy and full as it once was,” Fowke told Sudbury.com, adding that those staff members now working from home “went through policy-based criteria and approval from a supervisor and a supervisor’s supervisor to suss out that they met the criteria in the policy to work from home.”
Approximately half of those staff members now working from home are part-time. Among those working from home are 311 customer service operators, with Fowke noting that the call quality remains good and that staff members have maintained access to supervisors as needed, regardless of where they’re stationed.
Among the more significant permanent changes to come about at Tom Davies Square is the One-Stop-Shop, which was planned in the midst of the pandemic and opened on March 14.
Located in the main foyer of Tom Davies Square, the customer service location has consolidated 12 service counters formerly spread throughout the building
“Not only does it make accessing service easier, but it also increases security and enhances employee and customer health and safety throughout the building,” Fowke noted in his report to city council.
Also during the pandemic, more municipal applications were made available online and city council meetings began being held virtually. A virtual/in-person hybrid model is continuing on a permanent basis.
The city’s vaccination policy, which requires that city staff and elected officials are fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus or have an approved exemption, also remains in place on a permanent basis. At the latest update earlier this month, 46 city employees’ employment had been terminated as a result of their failure to meet these requirements.
During his presentation to city council, Fowke also highlighted the importance of the Community Control Group in drafting a map through and beyond the pandemic. In addition to the city, this group included Greater Sudbury Police Services, Health Sciences North, Public Health Sudbury and Districts and input from a variety of stakeholders.
The group met 96 times during the 708 days the province was under a state of emergency, from April 6, 2020, to March 14, 2022. Among other things, they executed a mass, multi-site vaccination program and planned for a post-pandemic recovery. Their recovery plan can be found by clicking here.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
